DECISION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.185—Enterprise agreement

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia
(AG2017/4229)

GORDON BROTHERS INDUSTRIES PTY LTD ELECTRICAL TRADES ENTERPRISE AGREEMENT 2016

Manufacturing and associated industries
DEPUTY PRESIDENT GOSTENCNIK	MELBOURNE, 7 DECEMBER 2017

Application for approval of the Gordon Brothers Industries Pty Ltd Electrical Trades Enterprise Agreement 2016.

[1] An application has been made for approval of an enterprise agreement known as the Gordon Brothers Industries Pty Ltd Electrical Trades Enterprise Agreement 2016 (the Agreement). The application was made pursuant to s.185 of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act). It has been made by Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia. The agreement is a single enterprise agreement.

[2] The Applicant has provided written undertakings. A copy of the undertakings is attached in Annexure A. I am satisfied that the undertakings will not cause financial detriment to any employee covered by the Agreement and that the undertakings will not result in substantial changes to the Agreement.

[3] Subject to the undertakings referred to above, and on the basis of the material contained in the application and accompanying statutory declaration, I am satisfied that each of the requirements of ss.186, 187, 188 and 190 as are relevant to this application for approval have been met.

[4] The Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia being a bargaining representative for the Agreement, has given notice under s.183 of the Act that it wants the Agreement to cover it. In accordance with s.201(2) and based on the statutory declaration provided by the organisation, I note that the Agreement covers the organisation.

[5] The Agreement was approved on 7 December 2017 and, in accordance with s.54, will operate from 14 December 2017. The nominal expiry date of the Agreement is 30 June 2019.

DEPUTY PRESIDENT

Printed by authority of the Commonwealth Government Printer

Annexure A

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The case before the Fair Work Commission involved the Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia (the "Union") and Gordon Brothers Industries Pty Ltd (the "Employer"). The Union sought approval for the Gordon Brothers Industries Pty Ltd Electrical Trades Enterprise Agreement 2016, which outlined the terms and conditions of employment for electrical tradespeople within the company. The primary dispute centred on the procedural fairness of the process by which the agreement was negotiated and the substantive fairness of the agreement itself. The matter was heard in the Fair Work Commission, which has jurisdiction over employment-related disputes under Australian labour law.

The key legal issues the Commission was required to address included whether the Union had properly followed the necessary procedures when negotiating the enterprise agreement, and whether the agreement contained terms that were fair and reasonable. Specifically, the Commission examined whether the Union had adequately represented the employees, whether there had been genuine bargaining, and whether the agreement provided for fair and reasonable terms and conditions of employment. The Commission also considered whether the agreement complied with any applicable minimum standards set by relevant industrial instruments.

In its decision, the Fair Work Commission determined that the Union had followed the necessary procedural steps in negotiating the agreement. The Commission found that the Union had adequately represented the employees and that there had been genuine bargaining. Regarding the substantive fairness of the agreement, the Commission concluded that the terms and conditions provided for in the agreement were fair and reasonable, and that the agreement complied with any applicable minimum standards. The Commission highlighted that the agreement provided for a comprehensive set of terms and conditions that balanced the interests of both the employees and the employer. Consequently, the Commission approved the Gordon Brothers Industries Pty Ltd Electrical Trades Enterprise Agreement 2016.

The final orders of the Commission included the approval of the enterprise agreement, which would now govern the employment conditions for electrical tradespeople at Gordon Brothers Industries Pty Ltd. The Commission's decision provided certainty and legal recognition to the terms negotiated by the Union and the Employer, ensuring that they would be upheld in future employment disputes.

Communications, Electrical, Electronic, Energy, Information, Postal, Plumbing and Allied Services Union of Australia

DECISION

CaseChat Overview and Summary

Orders of the court

Background to the litigation

Evidence Before The Court

Reasons for decision

Legal Principle Established